What’s “On Tap”

In the market for a new faucet? Sure you can buy a boring cheapie for $50 that will cost you more in the long run forrepairs or replacement. Spend a bit more and get a spectacular gem packed with hardworking features that will last your lifetime.

A faucet is the hardest working part of your Brentwood home. Think about how many times a day you use it and how tough life is when it’s not working. But aside from supplying water, a faucet can deliver the “wow” to your kitchen or bathroom. “Your faucet is like a piece of functional artwork,” says kitchen designer Mary Jane Pappas. “Its design and the way it feels in your hand have a major impact on the mood of your entire room.”

Sure, you can buy a basic faucet for $50. But you’re likely to get something nondescript that will cost you more in the long run for repairs or replacement. Spend about $250, however, and you’ll get something spectacular that’s packed with features and will last your lifetime. You can also spend a lot more on style, high-tech features and exotic finishes. You can even buy a faucet that lets you check your e-mail! Here are just a few of the features today’s faucets offer the Brentwood homeowner.

Hands-free operation

Hands-free, sensor-activated faucets are moving beyond public restrooms into Brentwood residential bathrooms and kitchens. Why would you want one? Aside from the cool factor, they save water by automatically switching the flow on and off while you shave or brush your teeth. They also help prevent the spread of germs, which can be a big deal with kids and is nice in the kitchen when you have raw chicken on your hands. Just make sure yours has an override switch that lets you keep the water running when you want to fill pots. Most are powered by standard “AA” batteries or can be hard-wired to a 120-volt circuit, and some even generate their own power.

Water-savers

There are lots of water-saving faucets on the market, and manufacturers have gotten much better at balancing conservation and performance so you don’t have to sacrifice a strong stream to save water. Most water-saving faucets use special aerators that increase airflow to compensate for decreased water flow, giving you the same flow strength as other faucets. You’ll find a huge variety of EPA WaterSense–certified faucets for your Brentwood bathroom, and the choices for kitchen faucets are on the rise. Most let you toggle between two or three flow rates.

Pull-down & pullout

Pull-down and pullout faucets are the most popular style. They let you move the water to where it’s needed—like the farthest corners of your sink or on top of your counter. Most are designed for kitchens, but there are a few for bathrooms, too. Pullouts are shorter than pull-downs and may fit better in smaller Brentwood kitchens with overhead cabinets. Pull-down models have high-arc spouts, which give you more working room in your sink but can splash more. Buttons or toggles on the spray nozzle let you pause the flow and switch between different flow rates and water patterns.

Ergonomic design

New faucets are all about convenience and function. Gone are the nonpivoting spouts and hard-to-turn handles. Today’s faucets feel good in the hand and provide extreme flexibility to help deliver water where and when you need it while adding high style to your home. Slim joystick-style levers have replaced clunky handles; highly articulated spouts fold, lift and stay where you put them; and wall-mounted faucets can give your room a sleek look and make cleanup a snap.

No matter which type of faucet you ultimately choose for your home, your Brentwood plumber can install your plumbing fixtures in no time and with no hassle.

Faucet Buying Tips

Shop where the pros shop to get high-end faucets for less. Check out plumbing supply stores, irawoods.com and faucetdepot.com.

For reviews and ratings of faucets and faucet manufacturers, visit starcraftcustombuilders.com.

The finish affects the cost. Chrome is the least expensive. Color finishes, nickel, oil-rubbed bronze, and stainless add $50 to $250 to the price.

The highest quality faucets are made of solid brass. These are especially recommended for hard water areas where corrosion is a problem.

Two-handle faucets are cheaper and give you precise temperature control. But single-handle faucets are easier to use.

Be sure the faucet you’re considering uses the same number of mounting holes as your sink, or get a base plate to cover extra holes.

Two-handle faucets are easier to clean if the handles are 8 in. apart instead of 4 in. Single-handle faucets are the easiest to clean.

Some faucets are available with extra-long water supply hoses that are easier to connect lower in the sink cabinet.

Some manufacturers sell faucet bodies and handles separately, so you can mix and match styles and finishes

Most lavatory faucets include the drain assembly, but most kitchen faucets don’t. You have to buy the drain and basket strainer separately.

Gooseneck (high-arc) faucets have higher clearances for pots but can cause splashing in a shallow sink.

For the longest time, identifying issues within your home's sewer or plumbing systems consisted of a great deal of guesswork and could often result in a great deal of damage to your home in the process. Fortunately, with advancements in technology over recent years, the process of identifying plumbing and sewer line issues within the home have become easier, faster, and more accurate than ever, and it's thanks in large part to the accessibility of video inspection services. With so much of your plumbing system hidden from view, identifying plumbing issues was always a bit difficult, but with video inspections, we are able to give your plumbing system a more thorough inspection than ever before, and all without having to take apart your plumbing to do so. To help highlight just a few of the benefits offered by video inspections for your home's plumbing and sewer system, our team of professionalRead More

Now that spring has finally arrived, many homeowners are choosing to get outside and tackle that long list of outdoor projects that have been on hold over the course of the winter. Even tho the milder weather and temperatures make this time of year ideal for tackling those outdoor improvements, it is important that you don't forget about the other vital aspects of your home that you can't see during this time of year, like your plumbing system. While it might not seem like spring is a time of year where you need to be overly concerned about something going wrong with your plumbing system, there are several plumbing issues that tend to be more common during this time of year, and it pays to know what you should be on the lookout for, and what you can do to keep these issues from getting out of hand. To help you in this, our team of professionals have taken the time to put together this short article highlighting exactly what some of these issues are, and what you can do to keep them in check.
Check Your Bathrooms
Leaking toilets are always an issue to be on the lookout for, but we tend to get more calls about them in spring than at other times of the year. While water leaking from the tank into the bowl isn't usually going to be overly harmful to your home, this constant usage can start to add up over time, and can make a dramatic impact when it comes to your monthly water bills over time. The most effective method of checking for these leaks is to put a few drops of food coloring into you toilet's tank and let it sit for about half an hour. After that time, if you notice that the water in your toilet bowl has changed color, it's a pretty clear-cut sign that there is an issue with at least one of the components in your reservoir. From here, the best course of action is to call in a plumbing professional who can get to the bottom of the issue and get it resolved for you so you stop losing water unnecessarily.
Protect Your Sewer Lines From Growing Roots
Spring is the time for growing, whether its your grass, your garden, or the trees around your property, and as the weather continues to warm up, everything is going to start spreading its roots and searching for water. In the case of trees, this can be particularly problematic as their roots sometimes have a tendency to work their way into your plumbing lines through cracks or damages in their search. Tree roots can cause serious blockages if they find their way into your plumbing lines, not to mention the damage they can cause in the process, so this spring, you will want to make sure that your have your underground pipes inspected and serviced to ensure they aren't at risk of having tree roots invade as the weather continues to heat up in the coming months.
Inspect Your Faucets
Leaking faucets can be a nuisance for more reasons that just the constant dripping sound they make. Depending on the severity of your leak, a leaking faucet can have a fairly large impact over time on your water bills, especially if you have more than one faucet that's doing it. This spring, make sure that your check for moisture in the areas around your faucets, as oftentimes they can develop a leak that is hidden from sight, especially in cases where they run under your sink or cabinets, and if you find any, call in a plumbing professionals as soon as possible to find the source of the leak and put a stop to it.
If you are looking for a professional Brentwood plumber, give us a call today at 925-470-0142 or fill out our online request form.Read More